Helen McEntee

I thank Deputy Doherty for raising this question. We have all been utterly appalled by the information we received and that we have been made aware of this week. As the Deputy mentioned, the information in the HIQA report sets out very clearly that a number of springs that were not medically approved were implanted into the bodies of three small children. The springs were corrosive and can be cor…

The Government is not a spectator here. This issue was brought to attention in September 2023. The Department of Health was notified the year after and a subsequent review is taking place and is at an advanced stage. The number of people who have been contacted is increasing. There is further work under way, through an action plan that is currently being drafted, to try to identify any further gro…

Similar to the previous question, the priority for all of us here, and this Government, is to make sure children are safe, be it online or offline or in their homes, bedrooms, communities and schools. It is an absolute priority to make sure children are protected. The world we live in is changing and for young people the world of online, social media and technology is part and parcel of their worl…

From the Government's perspective, our view, my view and the view of the Minister for communications is that the era of self-regulation is over and it has to be over. The Online Safety Commissioner needs to ensure - I know that she will - that our strategies and the commission's strategies focus on what is actually happening here and that includes algorithms. I fully agree with the Deputy that the…

I thank the Deputy for raising this matter. At the outset I acknowledge his role and leadership in the previous Government, ensuring Ireland was to the fore in supporting Palestine and supporting a two-state solution while calling for the unconditional release of hostages. However, I utterly reject his assertion that this Government has in any way changed in that position or that view. I assure hi…

It is in the programme for Government and we have said very clearly that we will implement it. The Tánaiste will meet with Senator Black in the coming days. Senator Black is the Member of the Seanad who brought forward this Bill. She is very clear that we need to get this right and that this is not straightforward. The Deputy is right: it is because of the ruling of the ICJ that the situation, the…

The knee-jerk reaction or response to anything that goes wrong - to call for people to be sacked or removed from a board - does not help anybody. It does not actually change the fact that we need to make progress, that we need people in place to be able to make sure the children's hospital can open, and that we need to make sure any recommendations coming from the reports we have discussed today c…

There will certainly be no timeframe if the Deputy wants the entire board sacked and removed. We would have to replace them and then make sure that progress can somehow continue without a board. We cannot make progress in opening any hospital bed, opening any acute hospital or having any surgery in the new hospital if we do not have a board. Let us be realistic here. What do we have to do?

We have to act on the facts that we know.

A report that was commissioned by HIQA clearly states that children were operated on with medical devices that should not have been used. We are acting. The persons responsible - we all have responsibility here in this House - including those who carried out the operations and those who decided to have operations on young children who did not need them, have to be held accountable too, and they wi…

It is not going to help a single person the Deputy has mentioned.

I thank the Deputy for raising this issue and acknowledge the huge amount of work he has done in bringing autism to the fore and ensuring it is firmly front and centre on the Government agenda. The programme for Government clearly sets out and prioritises the need to implement an autism innovation strategy and put it on a statutory footing, so that something will always be there and that this will…

The Deputy is right that we need to be better at forward planning and to do better. That is why, this year, we are about 40% ahead of where we were this time last year. That is why I intend that, by this time next year, we will have identified children and have children who know exactly where they will be going to school. It has to be the case that every single child is treated equally. It has to …

I reassure the Deputy and, most important, the parents and their children that the Minister of State, Deputy Moynihan, and I, working with the NCSE and the Department, will ensure the children have school places come September and do everything possible to make sure those places, in so far as it is possible, are within the children’s communities and that they have the right resources and supports …

The Attorney General is looking at this and, yes, it was brought to Cabinet this week. We need to assess the report and look at the potential options. The Deputy is right that of the eight orders, only one came forward with something substantial. There were some other minor offers from two of them but really we need to make sure that everybody who is responsible and everybody who played a part in …

I apologise as I am not aware of the details of the case. It is obviously essential people can access the care they need as quickly as possible. I will bring this to the Minister for Health and see if there is any way in which she can provide support.

There is a clear commitment in the programme for Government to review the current policy that you cannot drive a school bus over the age of 70. There have been reasons set out as to why that is the case but it is important we review it. We have approximately 7,900 buses across the country that bring children to and from school every day but we need more. We need to be able to fulfil our commitment…

I thank the Deputy. We all know and remember this case, which was a devastating case for Noah's family. As it is an ongoing investigation, the Deputy will appreciate I cannot comment on what is happening there. I can say that with any investigation of this kind, the Garda will always support, co-operate and do what it can in this type of investigation and, certainly, if there is work the Governmen…

I wish all of our students well and acknowledge the stress they are under and, indeed, the preparation under way at the moment. To clarify first and foremost from the information I have, 25% of students from last year will not apply this year.

On average, approximately 13% every year reapply for the next year and the indications are that this year will be no different. On top of that, every year, irrespective of whether there have been fluctuations or not, eight to nine out of ten students will get one of their top three choices. It is really important to stress that to students. It is not 25%, it is most likely about 13% and eight to n…

I thank the Deputy. This is an issue I know is ongoing and there is significant engagement between the Minister for Transport, the DAA and other relevant bodies in this regard. The Deputy is right; we are an island and we rely heavily on our airports and our air connectivity so it is really important we are not in any way disadvantaged. However, it is also important that we support the communities…

My number one priority is to make sure that every child has a school place come this September - not just this September but next September and beyond - and that we have the right structures in place such that children, families and parents do not have to fight as they have done in the past. I am very much aware of the situation in Dungarvan, County Waterford. I have been working with my colleagu…

I thank our ambulance workers and our paramedics for the unbelievable job they do in keeping us safe. This issue came to light only recently, and my understanding is that there is a review or the Revenue Commissioners are looking at this. Nobody should be disadvantaged or unable to do their job because of the situation the Deputy has outlined. My understanding is that a ruling is expected soon fro…

I welcome the students from Tara Hill to the Dáil. I absolutely agree with the Deputy on the need to support our own sector here at home. I have a brother who is very much involved in it, and the work they do and the content they produce is phenomenal. As regards the details, this was brought to Cabinet just this week, and the Minister was clear that while there will be a directive in the legisl…

To be very clear on this, there are no aircraft carriers landing here with any type of ammunition.